ST. LOUISE SCHOOL PARENT BULLETIN

February 1, 2018
Dan's Blog
All this week, we've been enjoying our celebration of national Catholic Schools' Week - a time when all the Catholic schools throughout America celebrate their successes and broadcast to their parish communities and wider communities why Catholic education is such a wonderful institution.
Tonight is our Open House, and from 6:30-7:30PM the classroom doors will be open, with our teachers greeting prospective school families, explaining the wonderful well-rounded Catholic education we provide. But remember, the Open House is also for you current St. Louise families. You are welcome to walk through the school tonight, introducing yourself and your children to who will be your teachers next year. It's also a great time to visit some of the specialist teachers you didn't have a chance to talk with at Curriculum Night last fall. You'll find specialist teachers tonight in the gym, library, music room, computer lab, science lab, art room, math room, and reading room.
  Speaking of current school families. TODAY IS THE BEGINNING OF YOUR RE-APPLICATION PERIOD TO ENROLL IN ST. LOUISE FOR THE 2018-19 SCHOOL YEAR. In the red Family Envelopes coming home today, you will receive you re-application paperwork and instructions for how to re-apply for your current kids in St. Louise, and also how to newly apply if you have children who will be enrolling for the first time with us (such as in PreK or Kindergarten).
You're also receiving a separate email today from the school office, explaining how to complete a portion of your re-application virtually through our Skyward database system. If you do not receive this email, please immediately contact Lola and Mindy in the school office.
As the re-application paperwork and instructions point out, even with the annual tuition increase announced for 2018-19, St. Louise School continues to be the best bang-for-the-buck! We will continue to charge the least expensive tuition of all the Catholic schools on the Eastside, and most likely, of all the private schools, period!

By the way, we also charge the cheapest re-application fee - only $95. But don't procrastinate in turning in all your re-application paperwork and in paying this fee, because if you do, this cheap fee increases to $220 (the same amount we charge newly applying families to apply). So I suggest you take advantage of the ability to pay less for the admissions process by devoting time this weekend to follow all the instructions in the letter I'm sending home in your red envelope. Remember, the deadline is February 15.
I created this checklist you may use to make sure you have followed all the proper steps for re-applying for admissions for the 2018-19 school year:   
____ Paid the $95 Re-Application Fee online.

____ For newly-enrolling child who is not currently attending St. Louise School, completed the virtual Student Application and Emergency Information Form.

____Also, for newly-enrolling child who is not currently attending St. Louise, completed the Addendum form

____ For returning child, completed the virtual Student Application and Emergency Information Form via the "Enrollment for 2018-19" section in Skyward.

____ Returned the completed Authorization Agreement for Direct Payments (EFT form).

____ Returned the completed Parent Contract.

Please look below for a great graphic of "A Dozen Reasons to Choose Catholic Schools." Thanks for demonstrating your belief in making a smart investment in your children by re-applying to send them to St. Louise Catholic School!

And thanks for reading,
Mr. Fitz

p.s.
Most of us adults remember the 70's disco song, "We Are Family." Did you know that your children know it too?! Don't believe us? Then check out THIS!  I want to thank Mrs. Val Cervantes for producing this video, which shows the positive spirit of our St. Louise students...and staff...and pastor!
Upcoming Calendar of Events  

Today
  • Open House, 6:30-7:30PM - invite your friends, coworkers, and neighbors to attend and find out about the school!
  • Re-Application period for the 2018-19 school year begins today; you are receiving paperwork in the red envelope, a Skyward-virtual-process email, & instructions on paying the $95 re-application fee online; the deadline to complete all of the above is February 15.

Tomorrow  - Parent Appreciation Day
  • Mr. Fitz & Mr. Fuerte want to show appreciation to parents by handing out coffee and cinnamon rolls in the main lobby from 8:30-9:00AM this morning; park the car, come in for a treat, and talk to our two administrators over coffee and a roll about school topics ...or about their picks for the Super Bowl.
  • Grade K-8 students will be bringing home appreciation-letters they wrote to their parents.
  • StL Hat Day - if you have the St. Louise-Logo cap, you may wear it indoors today.
 
Saturday, February 3
  • Father/Daughter Dance - 6:30-8:30PM in the parish hall.

Sunday, February 4
  • Chorale choir performs at the Mary, Queen of Peace (Sammamish) Mass at 11:30AM.

Monday, February 5
  • Chess Club begins their winter session.
  
Wednesday, February 7
  • Grade 6 Parent Meeting regarding environmental education camp, 6PM.
Thursday, February 8
  • Winter Concert featuring our grade 1 & 2 performers and our school band, 6:30PM in the parish hall (performers are to arrive at 6:00).
  • Bake Sale at lunchtime to raise funds for junior high activities.
Friday, February 9
  • CROWD Social for grades 6-8, 7:30-9:30PM in the parish hall.
Saturday, February 10
  • Speech Team competes at Archbishop Murphy HS
Tuesday, February 13
  • Valentine's Day observed at St. Louise School (due to Ash Wednesday on Feb. 14)
Wednesday, February 14 - Lent Begins
  • Soup Lunch for all; thank you for your donations (suggested $5); please see article below.
  • Ash Wednesday Liturgy at 1:45PM (parents, please arrive by 1:25 and meet your children at the classroom; expect a crowded parking lot and church).

Thursday, February 15
  • Early-Application Period ends for 2018-19 admissions; current families must re-apply by today's deadline in order to avoid the re-application fee increasing from $95 to $220.

Students Are Expected to Be Community Members
 
Student Learning Expectations - SLEs - are expectations that our students should know, understand, value, and be able to do by the time they graduate from St. Louise School. These 12 SLEs comprise four categories important to the development of a well-rounded student: an active Christian; a life-long learner; a well-balanced individual; and a community member. Each month, one or two different SLEs are focused on school-wide until the 12 expectations are covered by the end of the school year.

January's two Student Learning Expectation focused on throughout the school were:
  • #4.1 "A St. Louise student is a community member who honors the gifts of others and values the dignity of each person."
  • #4.3 "A St. Louise student is a community member who accepts leadership roles and collaborates with others."
    Below are highlights from some of the classrooms on how they have been working on achieving these two SLEs.
Following are some highlights of how various grade levels of students worked, at a minimum, at understanding these expectations or, at the optimal, of mastering achievement.

The work of our Chorale school choir embodies both of January's SLEs.  Providing music for the school liturgies demonstrates leadership, and every song the choir sings is an act of collaboration. The Chorale director Mrs. Cole says, "We couldn't function without respecting for the musical gifts of each other, especially when students step up to serve as cantors."

Our 4th graders demonstrated an understanding of the expectation that a St. Louise student is a community member who honors the gifts of others and values the dignity of each person when they studied the lives of Martin Luther King, Gandhi, St. Francis of Assisi, and Nelson Mandela.  Mrs. Danforth's and Mrs. Scruggs' students talked about these famous people's character traits and which traits make for good leaders and positive role models.  Then the 4th graders each wrote a paper on what they see is a problem in their world (be it their home, school, or community), and the paper needed to include a paragraph explaining in detail the steps the student would implement to improve this situation.  These were very well thought-out papers!

Also demonstrating their understanding of the importance of honoring the gifts of others, every kindergarten student wrote a two-sentence paragraph about a classmate and accompanied it with a drawing. Some examples are, "We care about others. Rachel is good at Chess", and "All of us love each other. Sophie is good at math."

To show they value SLE #4.1, students in Miss Casey's 2nd grade classroom kicked off the new year with a "30 Day Kindness Challenge."  Each day in January, students were encouraged to perform one act of kindness, and to track on a bingo board how many acts they accomplish.  The goal was to fill up the bingo board as much as possible by the end of the 30 days. Secondly, the 2A students made "compli-mittens," in which they randomly drew the name of a classmate and then wrote two compliments about him/her. See the display they made below.


To show understanding of the expectation that "a St. Louise student is a community member who honors the gifts of others and values the dignity of each person," in the library, Mrs. McIntosh read to the 5th graders the book, My Dreams of Martin Luther King. This is a story of a child who has a dream where people carried bags containing prejudice, hate, ignorance, violence, and fear, and they intended to trade these bags for those containing hope, freedom, peace, awareness, and love. The students discussed the meanings of all these words, and how they were words used by Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. when he preached about our need to treat other people with dignity.

In art class, the 6th grade artists worked on the SLE of  "honors the gifts of others and values the dignity of each person" in January when Mrs. Walker had them discuss how the art room can be the perfect place to compliment fellow classmates and acknowledge their achievements.  In art class, everyone has an opportunity to be celebrated for their hard work and artistic choices, and sharing these thoughts with others is a wonderful way to infuse a little extra kindness and cheer into our community.  Before completing their "selfie project" (check them out on the hallway bulletin board), each 6th grader was asked to find another artist and give honest and detailed compliments.  This practice was so well-received, that Mrs. Walker is going to have her students do this after other projects, allowing students to have a chance to share artist-praise with each other. 

Junior high students accept leadership roles and collaborate with others when they lead the school in ministry at school liturgies and at Catholic Schools Week Masses. Our 8th graders serve as the lectors, ushers, Eucharistic Ministers, and Sacristans at all these Masse. Both our 7th and 8th graders have a choice to join the "Leadership" elective class, and within that lead the school in Monday morning intercom announcements, as well as planning the CROWD Social (dance). Our 8th graders under Mrs. Herridge's direction, initiate mini-bake sales on the 2nd floor to raise funds for charitable causes and/or create items to sell at the St. Nicholas Breakfast & Bazaar to raise funds for charitable causes. Below are photos of some of the 8th graders who had booths set up in the parish hall at the St. Nicholas Bazaar.

As we move into February, the focus schoolwide will be on a new Student Learning Expectations. The SLE of the Month for February will be:
  • #2.1 "A St. Louise student is a life-long learner who demonstrates a solid academic foundation while using problem solving techniques, technology, critical thinking, and study skills.
Parents can help reinforce this expectation by discussing the meaning at home and brainstorming ways you and your family members demonstrate these same actions in your personal lives.





































If Your Child Has a Cell Phone or Other Online Access,
You Need to Read This
          
          Many St. Louise parents attended the showing of Screenagers this past fall in our parish hall, receiving education on how to make sure their children's screen-time and use of technology/phones is at a healthy, minimal level. If you follow the blog of the Screenagers' producer/writer, Dr. Delaney Ruston, you periodically receive further information and suggestions for how to raise your children in today's high-tech, too-much-screen-time world.
          Following is a recent blog from Dr. Ruston about incidents of "social cruelty" with kids' use of social media and/or texting.

"Definitions of cyberbullying vary, but usually, it's defined as some form of intentional, repeated aggression, using electronic forms of contact, such as texting and social media.
I am not a big fan of the words "cyberbullying" and "bullying." Pre-teens and teens have heard these words so many times they roll their eyes when they come up. Do the test -ask them if they feel they have been saturated with stuff about "bullying" and see how they respond. So, when I talk with them about such topics I often use the terms "online aggression" and "social cruelty."

 

No matter what we call it, unkind and stressful human interactions are a part of life, and the sooner we give kids skills to practice working through conflict and cruelty, the better.  Research shows that twenty percent of 8-year-olds and forty percent of 10-year-olds have phones (the majority of which are smartphones) and kids with phones, not surprisingly, are significantly more likely to be involved in cyberbullying.
 

Given a common aversion to the topic that teens can have, means that as adults we need to be more skillful in how we approach our conversations. Consider bringing up a news story of person bad-mouthing another person, and then from there, a good entry is the simple question about why-"Why might a person be acting a certain way?" There are always reasons behind a person's behaviors and talking about this with our kids is a nice way to help build their insight and empathy. For bullying, maybe a person wants to gain power in a social structure because they feel powerless in another setting, such as at home...."
 
 
To finish Dr. Ruston's blog, and to see other topics she periodically writes about, go to:
https://www.screenagersmovie.com/tech-talk-tuesdays/cyberbullying-what-to-do.

                  
Mr. Weiss captivates his junior high students with various activities that teach them about US History, such as this lesson that involved rolling a giant die. Hmmm...wonder what this was all about?!

New Menu Items for Hot Lunch
          
Dear St. Louise Parents,
 
Just an update on what's new with our hot lunch program. We are now offering some new menu items for your children to try.
  • Pasta and Pizza on Tuesdays.
  • Nacho's with or without chicken (with black beans and cheese sauce) and fresh fruit.
  • Thursday is our Sandwich and Salad Day - as well as two hot items.
  • Pizza Fridays with carrots and a cookie.
You can order daily up until 8pm the evening before, or order weekly or monthly ahead of time.
No minimum orders amount are needed.
 
Its easy to set up your account online.  Just visit the school website and follow the ordering instructions.
 
We welcome any suggestions on our program.
 
Thanks
Lunch Ladies Catering

Chargers Are in the Playoffs
          
          The regular season for CYO basketball just ended, and two St. Louise teams have made it to the playoffs.  The 7th Grade AAA boys' Chargers team will play their first playoff game this Saturday at 10:15 at Holy Rosary, West Seattle. The 8th Grade AA girls' team from St. Louise will play their first playoff game on Saturday also. The girls play at 5:45 at St. Anthony, Renton. You can find playoff brackets for the boys HERE, and for the girls HERE. If they advance in the playoffs, the championship games are next Sunday the 11th at Bishop Blanchet High School.
 
          Go, Chargers!

Annual Soup Lunch Coming Soon
          
          With Lent arriving early this year, we'll be observing Ash Wednesday on February 14, with our annual Ash Wednesday all-school liturgy at 1:45 and our annual Soup Lunch. Instead of students and teachers eating a typical, substantial and filling lunch, all will forego this type of lunch for a simple soup lunch.
         
We will be serving a cup of broccoli-cheddar soup, a dinner roll, and a half-pint of milk.  The broccoli-cheddar soup is meatless, so it satisfies the requirement that those Catholics 14 years-old and older must abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday. Even if your grade K-8 child doesn't care for soup, we still expect him/her to participate. (PreK will not be participating in the Soup Lunch.) Only a food allergy or medical condition should keep any K-8 student from our Soup Lunch day. In this case, please send a note to the teacher and pack for your child a small, very simple lunch that contains no treats. (See the ingredients of the soup HERE to confirm your child is not allergic.)
            Although we won't want your child to bring a lunch on February 14, we will ask to have him/her bring a cash donation that day that we will turn over to Catholic Relief Services (CRS), whose "Operation Rice Bowl" program helps feed the hungry in our state and in at least 40 countries throughout the world. Find out more about CRS HERE. The usual cash donation is around $5 - about the cost of purchasing a hot lunch online or packing a typical, filling sack lunch.
          Soup Lunch on Ash Wednesday will help your children develop self-discipline and make them feel the hunger for just a few hours that the less fortunate feel every day. In addition, donating money to Catholic Relief Services develops in your children the love that Jesus asks of His followers. Soup Lunch day is a great Catholic school tradition that we hope you'll enthusiastically support and praise your child for participating in it when he/she comes home with a growling stomach that  Ash Wednesday afternoon.

Last Call for Dads & for Volunteers
          
The annual Father/Daughter Dance is this Saturday, Feb. 3, from 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. in the Parish Hall, and there is still space available! Register online for $75 per dad and all his daughters. When registering, be sure to select "Father/Daughter Dance" and include the name of the dad and daughter(s) in the "Special Intentions" box. 
          
Additionally, the Father/Daughter Dance committee could use some volunteers on Saturday. Please contact Teresa Brosche or Rebecca Ort if you would like to help behind the scenes and earn some volunteer hours.

Parenting Class: It's Local and It's Free
          
          Kindering is once again offering free parenting classes for parents of children from 2 through 12.  The next class will begin on Monday, February 26th.  The class meets each Monday from 6:00-8:00PM for ten weeks.  The classes are held at Kindering's Bellevue site, just east of the Crossroads Mall.
          Kindering has been offering parenting classes since 1991.  Funding is primarily provided by United Way of King County and Horizon Foundation. If you would like more information on the class or want to register, please email Lois Ralph. Classes fill quickly and are on a "first come, first served" basis, so don't delay!

 

When she's not in the library, Mrs. McIntosh teaches computer classes to the primary grades.
See what's happening on our St. Louise Facebook page